Ball bearings have been used for many different mechanical applications. A ball bearing is often used when a rotatable shaft must be mounted within a housing. The insertion of a ball bearing reduces the friction that would occur between the shaft and the housing if the shaft were to ride directly on the surface of the housing. This would lead to grinding and eventual failure of the shaft or housing. Since a ball in a ball bearing is free to rotate between an inner race and an outer race, little to no friction occurs between the shaft and housing.
As the shaft rotates, heat can build up within the bearing and shaft causing axial expansion of the shaft. If the bearing is fixedly mounted within the housing and cannot be axially displaced, the bearing can seize and bind to the housing causing bearing damage due to induced axial load. This seizing of the bearing can be detrimental to a machine which is operating at high speeds and high heat since the shaft can no longer rotate with little to no friction.
A solution to avoid seizing of a ball bearing is to insert a linear bearing cartridge with the ball bearing. This solution addresses the problem of a bearing seizing with the housing since the linear bearing enables axial expansion of the rotating shaft. A problem with using a linear bearing cartridge, though, is that a linear bearing cartridge requires a large amount of space to be installed properly with a ball bearing. Additionally, a linear bearing is an expensive additional component.
Thus, there has been a long-felt need for a ball bearing that can rotate at high speed and has integrated components within the bearing in order to enable for axial expansion of a rotating shaft to prevent seizing of the bearing with the housing.